The Avalanches on sampling, surreal film, and their new album 'No Bad Memories'
The Avalanches' core members Robbie Chater and Tony Di Blasi discuss their new album, No Bad Memories, which samples sources including children's science shows and Tunisian music. They also made a 35-minute film with actor Haley Joel Osment, shot over three weeks in snowy Japan. The interview covers their creative process and the group's cult following.
Robbie Chater and Tony Di Blasi are the core members behind Australian outfit the Avalanches, whose 2000 debut Since I Left You became a landmark in sample-based plunderphonics and earned a devoted cult audience. Their new record, No Bad Memories, takes its title from an old slogan for a 5-inch floppy disk and draws on children's science programs, Tunisian music, vintage pop, jingles, and obsolete-device noises.
For the accompanying 35-minute film, the pair enlisted Haley Joel Osment, co-director Jonathan Zawada, and cinematographer Andrés Arochi. Shot over three weeks in snowy Japan, it combines filmed scenes, collage, and animation; Osment plays Ken, a Takumi employee who collects clients' belongings for a mysterious archive.
The album and film may resonate with longtime fans of sample-based music and cult acts while also reaching listeners curious about how technology and advertising shape memory. The short film could introduce the Avalanches to film audiences through Osment's involvement, and its themes may prompt reflection on digital archiving and nostalgia. However, impact likely remains niche, tied to existing fan communities rather than broad mainstream change.